#12 - RHP Chen-Wei Lin
Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 60 | Splitter: 40 | Command: 45 | Overall: 40+
Background:
The Cardinals made history by signing Lin in 2023, making him the first player the organization has ever signed from Taiwan. He had spent the previous two summers pitching in the Northwoods and MLB Draft Leagues, giving scouts a look at his loud but very raw skillset. While his arm talent stood out immediately—headlined by a fastball that sat in the mid-90s—his inconsistent mechanics and lack of strike-throwing ability raised red flags early on. Those concerns showed up again in his brief stint with Palm Beach to close out the 2023 season.
Scouting Report:
Lin flipped the script in 2024, establishing himself as one of the biggest risers in the system. Over 116 innings, he posted a 2.79 ERA and significantly improved his ability to fill up the strike zone, dropping his walk rate to just 7.8%. With a more fluid and repeatable delivery, Lin was finally able to harness his raw stuff and execute more consistently across outings.
Prior to the 2024 seeason, Lin trained at a school in Florida and incorporated a water bag training program designed to smooth out his delivery. He credited this regimen, along with guidance from his uncle, former MLB pitcher Hong-Chih Kuo, and the Cardinals’ pitching development brain trust, as major reasons for his improved control and consistency.
Lin’s fastball averages 96 MPH and can touch as high as 101. While the pitch only has about 14 inches of induced vertical break from a standard six-foot release, it generates heavy arm-side run—registering north of 16 inches. The pitch doesn't induce much swing-and-miss, but it worked as an effective contact neutralizer. Though he shows solid control of the pitch inside the zone, he tends to live over the heart of the plate, and improving his ability to work the edges will be key moving forward.
His best secondary pitch is without question a firm 88 MPH changeup that mirrors his fastball’s elite arm-side movement while creating around seven inches of vertical separation. He used the offering 30% of the time vs. lefties and generated a 54.4% whiff rate while limiting them to a .144 wOBA. Lin has shown the ability to tunnel it effectively, and it gives him a legitimate weapon against left-handed hitters.
Against righties, he leans more heavily on a mid-80s gyro slider. The pitch can act as a backup slider with around 3 inches of arm-side run due to his pronation bias, but it performed very well at the Single-A level despite awfully low spin rates. While the pitch lives on the opposite end of a true gyro shape, it still tunnels effectively off his fastball, thanks to a 14-inch difference in arm-side movement and 10-inch difference in vertical break.
Lin also debuted a mid-80s splitter in 2024. The pitch showed flashes of promise and added a new wrinkle to his mix thanks to its unpredictable movement profile, but it was used sparingly and lacked consistent command and feel. With refinement, it could develop into a viable offering, though it remains more of a project at this stage.
Future:
Lin’s top-tier velocity and improved control gives him a promising foundation as a starting pitching prospect. The fastball-changeup combo offers a legitimate one-two punch against lefties. I'm still not sure how to feel about the slider’s long-term viability despite its effectiveness in 2024. Finding a way to increase its velocity without sacrificing the pitch’s downward tilt will be key. If it all comes together, there’s enough projection in his arsenal to dream on a mid-rotation outcome. Continued development of his secondaries—along with improved fastball execution—will ultimately determine whether he reaches that ceiling or settles into a hard-throwing relief role.
